282 THE ENTOMOLOGIST, 



A light-giving insect of a new type is not an every-day 

 discovery. Light-giving insects at all are one of the won- 

 ders of nature. As yet we only know^ four or five types of 

 them — one in the Myriapods (the Scolopendrae), another in 

 theHoiiioptera (the Fulgorida^ or candleflies), whose light- 

 givng properties still require confirmation, and two in the 

 Coleoptera (the fireflies and glowworms). It is possible, 

 indeed, that there may be three types in the Coleoptera, be- 

 cause Afzelius relates that the Paussus which he described 

 under the name of Paussus sphserocerus was a light-giver. 

 It dropped from the ceiling of his room at Sierra Leone on 

 his paper at dusk ; and he observed that its globular antenna? 

 were phosphorescent, and that it bore them before it like 

 lamps to light it on its way. Those who are fond of tracing 

 the adaptation of structure to condition of life have thought 

 that this was an instance to the point; for the other Paussi 

 are inhabitants of ants' nests ; and if we might judge of their 

 feelings by our own, it would no doubt be very convenient 

 to have such a pair of carriage-lamps permanently borne in 

 front, without, what now forms the burden of our cabmen's 

 complaint, expense for oil, risk of breakage, or trouble of 

 cleaning. But in addition to our ignorance of the true wants 

 and feelings of these little creatures, it so happens that the 

 species which Afzelius saw and figured has never since been 

 met with ; and the phosphorescence of the antenna?, either in 

 this or any other Paussus, has not yet been confirmed. If we 

 deduct it, we only know the fireflies and glowworms as light- 

 givers among beetles. Of both of these, many species have 

 been described, and doubtless many more remain to be dis- 

 covered ; and 1 should never have dreamed of treating the 

 occurrence of merely a nevv species of a known type as a 

 matter of any special interest. But it is different with a new 

 type, or the unknown larval form of a known type. 



The difficulty which I have in dealing with it is that it is 

 very doubtful that we really do know the larva of the firefly. 

 The larvic of the glowworms we know perfectly. They live 

 in the open air, and their light betrays them. The larvae of 

 the fireflies, on the other hand, we may presume do not live 

 in the open air. Like the rest of the Elaterida? (to which 

 family they belong), they live in the heart of rotten timber, 

 or otherwise bury themselves in vegetable tissues. Living 



